The Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) announced the results of the 2023 National Baseball Hall of Fame voting, with Scott Rolen being the only player nominated to Cooperstown.
In his sixth year on the ballot, Rolen narrowly edged the 75% necessary cutoff margin by capturing 76.3% of the vote, a mere total of five votes that secured his enshrinement. Rolen once had just 10.2% of the vote on his debut ballot, making him the only player with such a low vote in his first year of eligibility to eventually garner an election to the Hall.
Across 17 seasons in the Major Leagues between 1996-2012, Rolen primarily is remembered for being a key member of the St. Louis Cardinals, a team in which he captured the only World Series championship of his career in 2006.
Rolen finished his career amassing 2,077 total hits, 316 home runs, 1,287 RBI, and an impressive batting line of .281/.364/.490. A seven-time All-Star and 1997 National League Rookie of the Year, he also earned eight Gold Glove Awards.
Breaking into the Majors with the Philadelphia Phillies in his first full season in 1997, Rolen’s career is regarded as being a consistent power bat with impeccable defense at the hot corner. He became just the 18th third basemen to ever receive a nod to Cooperstown.
While impactful with the Phillies, Rolen is remembered and surely set to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame as a member of the Cardinals.
Finishing within the top five of NL MVP voting in 2004, the year saw a career-high .314 batting average with 34 homers and 124 RBI. Just two years later, Rolen was a key member in leading the Cardinals to a 2006 World Series championship, finishing the season with a .296 batting average, .887 on-base plus slugging percentage and 48 doubles.
The closest to punching his ticket to Cooperstown along with Rolen was longtime Colorado Rockies slugger Todd Helton, who needed just 11 more votes. Helton fell short of the threshold with 72.2% of the vote.
There were a number of former Los Angeles Dodgers on the 2023 Hall of Fame ballot as well. Most notably, both Gary Sheffield and Andruw Jones saw their percentages rise.
For Sheffield in his ninth year on the ballot, he rose from 40.6% to 55%. Jones in his sixth year on the ballot, increased from 41.1% to 58.1%. In his final time of Hall of Fame eligibility, Jeff Kent did not receive enough votes in the 10th year, garnering 46.5%.
Although surrounded by PED allegations, Manny Ramirez saw his support grow from 28.9% to 33.2% in his seventh year on the ballot. Bobby Abreu’s vote grew to 15.4% in his fourth year, up from 8.6% last year.
In his second year on the ballot, Jimmy Rollins’ vote grew from 9.4% in his first year to 12.9% in the latest voting.
Appearing on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time, Andre Either, Bronson Arroyo and Jayson Werth all received less than 5% of the ballots counted, therefore ended their Cooperstown eligibility. Ethier and Werth did not garner any votes.
Fred McGriff joining Scott Rolen for Hall of Fame induction
Receiving the necessary 75% of the vote by the 16 members of the Contemporary Baseball Era committee, former Dodgers first baseman Fred McGriff will join Rolen this summer to be enshrined in Cooperstown. McGriff is the first to be elected through the committee.
Known for his powerful bat and sure glove at first base, McGriff was a five-time All-Star and collected 2,490 hits, with 493 being home runs, and 1,550 RBI while playing for six different organizations.
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